"That's... Gon?"
Subsequently, Gon and the Ant King left the royal palace one after another.
Morel and the others also noticed the change in Gon and were astonished.
"Gon!"
Seeing this, Bisky's expression changed drastically, and she shouted.
But Gon only looked back and gave everyone a reassuring glance.
He didn't speak.
"He..."
Morel's voice was serious.
He and Bisky both saw the problem!
Gon's condition...
Bisky, as the teacher who raised Gon and Killua, felt the most complex emotions at this scene, an indescribable pain.
Contracts and vows, these things, cannot be overdrawn just because you want to.
Not everyone can achieve them…
It first requires you to possess strong faith and resolve, which then causes your Nen to change and, in turn, affects your body.
Currently, even if she and Morel wanted to fight the Ant King in Gon's place, they couldn't… because they couldn't overdraw their lives.
The harmony of heart and will.
Even if the two could overdraw, it would require time for preparation and readiness.
Bang!
Then, under their watchful eyes, Gon and the Ant King, like two anti-aircraft shells, shot into the sky one after another. Relying on their powerful lower limb bursts, they seemed to fly, accompanied by loud noises and vibrations, disappearing into the night.
"You guys quickly contact the Association and inform them of the Chairman's death. The Ant King is still alive. Have the management send more personnel as soon as possible!" Bisky suddenly turned around and sternly looked at Knov, Shoot, and Pam, giving instructions.
"Withdraw first, taking Killua and that girl with you. If the two of us don't return… consider us dead."
After speaking, Bisky, in a rare display, revealed her true form in front of outsiders. Her limbs began to swell and enlarge, her muscles bulging.
Her physique was filled with masculine energy, completely incongruous with her female identity, and the lines of her face became more rugged.
Without further ado, she, along with Morel, chased in the direction where Gon and the Ant King had disappeared.
The three who hadn't reacted were left looking at each other, stunned. No one had expected the Chairman to be defeated!
And the Ant King seemed unharmed.
In the end… the entire extermination team was reduced to relying on Gon to step forward…
Knov shed tears, and Shoot also looked self-reproachful.
Pam, concerned about Gon, wanted to follow, but was stopped by her teacher, Knov.
The mission was not yet over.
Everything was to be based on the mission plan; they couldn't lose sight of the bigger picture.
At this moment, Knov heard footsteps.
The ones approaching were Fante and Anthony…
"You two scoundrels!"
Knov couldn't help but roar.
His anger stemmed from Oboro, who had taken Pouf and Youpi but hadn't dealt with them.
Instead, they had returned with the Ant King.
If Youpi had been killed in the palace at that time…
Furthermore, although the Oboro Squad had no official appointment, they were still members of the Association, companions… yet they had remained on the sidelines the entire time.
"What are you yelling about?"
Anthony picked his ear, even taking out a wooden comb to stylishly comb his pompadour, his tone flippant, "We have no obligation to help you."
"You!"
Knov's forehead veins bulged.
These members of the Oboro Squad, due to joining the Association and being nurtured by Oboro… had a shallow emotional connection to the Association. They obtained their Hunter licenses merely for convenience.
What they truly believed in and respected was Oboro himself.
Not the Association.
Moreover, the ant incident was related to a series of power struggles within the Association, so Anthony and Fante naturally couldn't interfere.
As for the Ant King's revival, the Captain had already given instructions beforehand.
The Ant King's appearance made the two of them marvel at Oboro's foresight… so there was no need to be surprised.
"Oboro is already dead, and you two are still..."
"Shhh, shhh, shhh."
Knov suppressed his anger, but before he could finish speaking, he saw Anthony shake his comb and interrupt him, "Be careful what you say. I believe anyone in this world can die, including the Chairman. But only my Captain will not die… at least not until he sets foot on that continent."
By the end of his words, Anthony's gaze towards Knov was unfriendly.
He didn't mind teaching a lesson to someone who spoke ill of Oboro.
The atmosphere between the two became tense.
"Alright."
Fante patted his teammate's shoulder, then looked at the group led by Knov and said calmly, "The Ant King is gone… Didn't you notice that the two ants left behind are no longer moving?"
With that said.
The others finally reacted and looked up at the building, specifically the terrace where Gon and the Ant King had stood earlier.
The miniaturized Pouf and Youpi should have still been up there.
These two ants actually wanted to kill humans, especially Pouf… but for them, the King's command was absolute.
The Ant King had already said he wouldn't kill these people and would let them go.
So, even if Pouf was unwilling, he wouldn't dare to kill them.
Of course, he could imprison these humans and torment them… Pouf had already wasted some time, persuading the hesitant Youpi to capture some Nen users first. But when they were about to act, suddenly, without any warning.
Their own flesh and blood began to decay, their life force rapidly draining away…
At the same time, foul blood oozed from their noses and mouths.
They had risked their lives to save the Ant King, entering… the epicenter of a nuclear explosion, already deeply poisoned. Not to mention that they had transferred most of their life essence to Meruem.
Pouf, palm-sized, fell directly from mid-air, his pupils contracting, unable to breathe.
Youpi, on the other hand, enlarged his body as usual. Just as he was about to leap from the terrace to the ground outside the palace, the poison took effect.
His figure stumbled, and he fell backward.
At this moment, a human climbed up from below the terrace and landed steadily between the two ants.
It was Fante.
"As expected..."
Fante held a cigarette butt, took a deep drag, his eyes gleaming with excitement, and scanned the condition of the two ants.
"Human..."
Miniature Pouf extended his small arm, reaching for Fante's ankle, as if wanting to say something.
Instead, all he received in response was a cigarette butt thrown by the human, still burning…
After the cigarette butt extinguished, Pouf died with his eyes wide open.
Fante then walked to the edge of the terrace and said sternly to Knov and the others below, "These two ants are dead… but it's not advisable to get close now. They carry potent poison and radiation, making them extremely dangerous. They need to be handled by professionals."
Dead?
Knov and the others were stunned.
After Fante finished speaking, he walked down the steps, maintaining a distance from the two ant corpses.
He couldn't see the souls dropped by these two ants; only Oboro could.
But he knew that souls had a time limit after dropping… so he had to guard here.
Although the ants carried potent poison, as long as they didn't get too close and didn't stay too long… it would be fine.
Then, Knov and the others also hurried up.
They saw the state of Pouf and Youpi's deaths.
They looked at Fante and Anthony, but these two seemed to have no intention of explaining…
"Stay put. Our Captain will be back soon."
Fante sat on the steps, took out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket, put one in his mouth, lit it with a lighter, and said in a deep voice, exhaling smoke.
They didn't need to explain. After the Ant King's death, the Association's higher-ups would naturally learn about Netero's secret and the matter of the implanted micro-nuclear bombs.
Therefore, it was impossible for them to claim credit for killing the two ants.
But Oboro had indeed subdued Youpi and Pouf, reducing casualties and lowering the mission's danger level… If these two ants had maintained their full combat strength, Knov and the others would have been at a severe disadvantage.
Their current situation might have been even more dire.
...
After confirming they were far enough from the royal city that the battle wouldn't involve others.
The berserk Gon immediately launched an attack on the Ant King.
Both of them moved at extremely high speeds within the space… their figures were completely invisible, only the sharp sound of air being torn apart could be heard, along with dust rising from the ground.
The Ant King was shocked!
Because Gon's perception had completely captured him.
That Nen-infused punch landed precisely on his abdomen.
Keep in mind, he had already been reborn, and with his talent and growth potential, after the battle with Netero, he had undergone further sublimation.
In other words, he was now far, far stronger than when he fought the human elder…
Both in terms of combat thinking and abilities.
If they were to fight again, the Ant King was confident that he could break through Netero's Hundred-Type Guanyin's defense in an instant.
But… the 'young man' before him was effortlessly keeping up with his reactions and movements.
It wasn't the peak of consciousness like Netero's, but rather, his physical attributes alone were already close to his level.
Boom!
A punch was thrown, and the sky above exploded like a golden sun hanging high, its roar shaking the heavens.
The Ant King immediately shot towards the ground like a straight black line.
The moment it touched the ground, the land within a radius of several hundred meters was violently thrown into the air, the horizon cracking and sinking.
Boundless storms raged.
Gon's attack did not cease. Almost as the Ant King was falling, he followed at the same speed…
His expression was resolute, without the slightest hesitation.
Thick Nen power gathered on his fist again, as if… for him, there was no concern about Nen consumption, nor any need to find the right moment to use a special move.
His offensive style was simple… direct.
At this moment, there was no trickery or evasion, only brute force against brute force.
Boom boom boom.
How terrifying was the battle between Gon and the Ant King?
Bisky and Morel pursued with all their might but couldn't get close to the battlefield, remaining very far away.
Even so, they still saw Gon's unleashed Nen in the night sky, that incredibly dazzling light…
The sheer magnitude of that Nen alone was something that human life forms couldn't produce; at least… Bisky and Morel had never seen anything like it before.
Nen's quantity was linked to vitality and life force. To wield immense Nen power, one first needed a transcendent body.
And this level of Nen, although seemingly not as overwhelming as Netero's Hundred-Type Guanyin… was a Nen ability!
It was a technique.
Gon had compressed an even more immense and vast amount of Nen. If it weren't compressed, its pure explosive range would be incomparable to the Hundred-Type Guanyin.
"He's fighting with his life!"
Bisky clenched her fist.
While this Nen ability was terrifying, the cost was proportional to the consumption: life.
Gon… wasn't thinking about surviving at all.
He just wanted to kill the Ant King.
Morel was also moved…
In their eyes, that young man was just a child.
The tremors and sounds of the fierce battle continued.
Bisky and Morel could both feel it…
The situation was like a massive army conducting continuous missile tests, bombarding the earth indiscriminately, destroying everything.
"What should we do?"
While running at full speed, Morel looked at Bisky.
The closer they got to the battlefield, the more they realized that with their abilities, they couldn't intervene… even entering the core area posed a constant threat to their lives.
The residual impact of their fight… if it were to affect them, the consequences would be severe.
This also meant they couldn't stop Gon.
If Gon could kill the Ant King, it would be one thing, but if he couldn't… they would likely die here as well.
"Once the battle is over, use your ability to create smoke, and I'll hold it off… You take Gon and leave." Bisky said sternly.
"…"
Morel opened his mouth.
He still didn't say it.
He felt it was meaningless… he understood Bisky's feelings.
However, judging by Gon's reckless fighting style, even if he eventually killed the Ant King, Gon himself would likely…
And for the Ant King to kill them… might only take a single thought.
In the face of absolute power, any strategy was useless.
He and Bisky rushing over… was actually out of a sense of responsibility as elders and seniors, and as inheritors of the Hunter legacy, not wanting to see a young man sacrifice himself before them.
Even if there was only a one in a hundred or one in ten thousand chance… they had to try.
"Hm?"
As they were thinking, the two sensed something unusual.
The intensity of the battle seemed to have calmed down.
It wasn't as fierce as before!
"It's over?"
Bisky's expression changed drastically.
Too fast!
However, with the battle over and the residual shockwaves no longer sweeping, it became safer for them to approach and enter the core area.
A few minutes later, they arrived late, finally reaching the edge of the battlefield.
But the scene that greeted Bisky froze her in place.
Dust particles still floated in the air. In front of her was a vast, flat Gobi Desert. The previously protruding rock formations and crust had been completely obliterated… and what was striking was that on the land as far as the eye could see, a crater-like depression had appeared.
Big!
Incredibly big!
Its east-west span was at least over a thousand meters!
And at the bottom of the deep pit, like a valley, two black dots faced each other, one on the left, one on the right.
On the left was the Ant King.
Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth, and he had some injuries, though not too serious…
And on the right was Gon.
However, unlike in the royal palace just now, his black hair, which had been standing on end with his Nen, was now cascading down his shoulders, his appearance disheveled… his legs were unnaturally curled, and he sat on the ground.
What shocked Bisky was… Gon's exposed limbs had atrophied.
His once strong body seemed to have shrunk, looking more than a size smaller.
"Is that enough?"
The Ant King glanced at the two humans who had intruded into the battlefield, paid them no mind, but instead swayed his tail and looked at the exhausted Gon, saying calmly, "I have let you vent your anger to your heart's content… From a human's perspective, what you've accomplished has far exceeded my expectations! You have earned my respect…"
Meruem said, extending a hand to Gon, sincerely.
Based on pure strength, this young man was qualified to be his opponent.
More dangerous than the old man before him…
In fact, he was also seriously injured.
But to kill him… was impossible.
The young man was strong, with the potential to threaten him, but… in terms of overall strength, he couldn't defeat him.
If it were before his rebirth, with his contempt and vague understanding of humans, perhaps he would have lost to this young man, but now…
"It's over. This battle has no winner or loser… Purely in terms of will and resolve, we each have our own things to do and beliefs." The Ant King said, turning to leave, "Your condition is dire…"
With that, the Ant King glanced at Bisky and Morel, who were running frantically towards them, "Take him away…"
The implication was that the Ant King didn't want to kill them.
Saving the young man now might offer a glimmer of hope.
The Ant King's words made Bisky and Morel pause slightly.
Why?
Because… this didn't seem like the Chimera Ant they knew, this foreign species.
It was more like a human's tone and thoughts.
There was a sense of 'humanity' in the Ant King?
"Hey…"
Before the two could approach Gon, seeing the Ant King about to leave, Gon, who appeared weak and on the verge of death, suddenly called out.
His body's muscles atrophied again, becoming gaunt.
But his previously dissipating aura suddenly became more terrifying, filled with killing intent.
His black hair whipped wildly above his head. As he slowly raised his face, it was filled with a ferocious and chilling killing intent, difficult to see directly… it felt as if his face was black, his eyes hollow, yet they blazed like torches with white light.
"Don't get me wrong, you're not human… Don't pretend to be human!"
"I also… don't need your pity."
"The battle isn't… over yet… Don't think about running…"
Gon spoke word by word, his speech intermittent, becoming somewhat slurred.
"Gon… that's enough!"
"It's really enough!"
Bisky shouted upon seeing this.
Just as she was about to step forward, suddenly, Gon waved his hand.
An explosive wave of energy sent Bisky flying back, falling more than ten meters.
It was evident that Gon still retained a sliver of self-awareness at this moment; otherwise, Bisky would have been more severely injured.
His current state… was clearly his will condensed into a single point.
Kill the Ant King before him!
His brain, beyond executing this one command, could no longer process anything else.
"It's over!"
Morel looked at this scene, his heart sinking to the bottom.
Gon's condition was beyond saving… unless the Ant King died, his obsession wouldn't dissipate.
He ran over to check on Bisky's condition.
Meanwhile, the Ant King, who was about to leave, stopped. He turned back to look at the 'young man' regaining his momentum, and frowned, "It's useless... You can't kill me. I also have... things that are very important to me to do. Just like you, things more important than my life..."
"What happened before, I can apologize to you... Even, I am willing to compensate for your losses at any cost."
These words were not just spoken to Gon, but also to Morel and Bisky, conveying his stance.
"However, my time is also limited. If you insist on fighting me, I can only kill you first."
With that said, the Ant King turned his body back, facing Gon directly.
____________________
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